The Secret of Life
by bookworm383
Summary: Draco Malfoy used to be a faithful son until one night changed everything. Hermione Granger thought she was an ordinary little bookworm know-it-all until a cat showed up at her doorstep. Harry Potter used to think that nothing would take him from his relatives' tight leash until a giant showed up on a rainy night. Everything changed for the three in Diagon Alley.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Therefore I present** ** _The Secret of Life_** **.**

The Meeting

Draconis Lucius Malfoy was sitting on his balcony watching the family eagle fly on top of the Quidditch field and scaring away any unwanted company, protecting the rest of the birds while doing so. The eagle was prideful and puffed out it's chest while it conversed with the other birds. Not afraid of their species, not worried about its parents and so called 'responsibilities', not afraid of every move it makes in case it angers his father but continuing to do as it pleases with no foreseen consequences.

Draco sighed to himself. He wished he had the freedom to do as he wishes. Last night he had an epiphany and not a moment too soon. It was a week before school started and he was about to go to Diagon Alley in order to get his school supplies. He was looking forward to Hogwarts at first because he would get to make filthy mudbloods feel as worthless as they are, but last night changed things drastically.

Lucius, his father, had brought a muggle girl home. He'd a lot to drink with his fellow Death Eaters, which of course included Avery, Mulciber, Crabbe Senior, Goyle Senior and the two Lestrange brothers. They decided that it would be entertaining to bring some filth to their house to toy with. It wasn't unusual. They did this often, Draco knew, drunk or sober. Ever since the Dark Lord died the Death Eaters that weren't caught and put in Azkaban decided that it was up to them to make sure that they got rid of the remaining filth in the world slowly but surely. The Ministry knew none the wiser. All they saw was rich men the bribed them and kept them in the job. They got away with everything.

At the time Draco was proud of the work his father and his friends were doing. Ever since he was born he had been told that muggles and muggleborns were contaminating the world, that muggles were just waiting to get their filthy hands on the to hang them and burn them and that mudbloods were even worse. They were mutants that were going to spread a disease on all purebloods. All this time Draco believed everything that was told to him because, well, there was no one to tell him otherwise. And it was his father, for Merlin's sake. What else was he supposed to think?

Last night changed everything of course, and it was all because of Antonin bloody Dolohov and his father's stupid pride and Draco's stupid weakness.

When his father and the other Death Eaters returned home they were laughing while they dragged the silenced muggle in the house. The girl at most was six years old. She was kicking and attempted to scream but not a sound came out. There were tears running down her face, her wide blue eyes filled with fear and despair. Draco watched, frozen with shock from the doorway to the living room. He had never witnessed these things happen before. He only heard sounds from up in his room briefly, mostly screams and cackling. Even then he only heard it for a brief moment before his mother silenced the room. He became immune to the noise, because that was what was expected of him. Only listen and follow orders, never question what is happening because that is just the way things are. Until the time came for him to become a leader like his father and take over the family fortune he was only required to be a faithful son. This was never a problem because he only ever knew what his father told him.

When he stared into that girl's eyes he saw something else. He saw her story. He saw that she was snatched out of nowhere and she was scared. He saw that she had no idea where she was and that she was innocent. She had no idea who they were and why they were taking her. She had no idea that she was filth. She had no idea why she was there. And her eyes pleaded for them to stop. Draco made to take a step towards her, to help her in anyway he could though he didn't know how at that moment, but his mother held him in place.

He turned to look at her and wasn't surprised to see that her face was impassive, revealing no emotion. He was surprised however to see sorrow in her eyes. That one little emotion seemed to trigger something in Draco at that moment. His mother had always been the one to reveal the most care to Draco. Taking him out to hang out with his friends, making cookies for him on the weekends and making sure he remained as happy as possible. His father was more of the intimidating figure to put him in his place if he stepped out of line. Draco had always assumed that his mother agreed with everything his father did to muggles and mudbloods. But this little display of emotion proved otherwise. Draco had cleared his throat uncomfortably which caught the attention of Dolohov.

Dolohov had turned and caught his eye, then he smirked slightly. He must have noticed the little show of sympathy in Draco, or at least the tiniest hint of him feeling anything more than hatred towards the muggle. At that moment Draco was more terrified than he had ever been.

"Lucius, my friend, don't you think it's time that little Draco learned what it truly means to be pure."

Lucius turned to look at his son and smiled with glee. Draco gulped nervously. He had never seen his father so unhinged. "Ah yes! Draco come and witness us clean the world of filth!"

Narcissa tightened her grip on her son for a split second, then reluctantly released him. Draco allowed himself to feel panic before schooling his features into an impassive portrait. If they questioned his feelings for a second he had no doubt they would literally knock some sense into him. He didn't want the fate that would most likely meet this poor innocent muggle girl. Draco walked forward to be by his father's side and looked at the muggle girl again. She looked at him like he was a monster. He stared at her eyes, conveying that he was sorry. All she did was turn her head away, a tear running down her chubby cheek.

After that the hours were filled with tortured screams, blood spilling, hysterical laughter and the feeling of nausea that wouldn't leave him. When the girl finally started to die Draco mentally sighed in relief, glad that the girl's suffering would end, outwardly he was laughing with the rest of the Death Eaters glad that another piece of filth would be gone.

His father bent down to whisper in his son's ear. "Look at her eyes Draco." He did as he was told. "Look at how the life leaves her body. Isn't it beautiful." Draco nodded because even though it was disgusting how it happened the sight of the soul leaving a body was beautiful. If it was a peaceful death Draco would be crying tears of sadness and joy. But he was a part of this death.

He watched as an innocent girl was sliced, hexed, flung around and Crucioed. He stood there and did nothing. He had never felt more disgusted in his life.

While his father and the other Death Eater disposed the body Draco exited the room as quickly as possible and ran up the stairs when he passed his parents room he heard the faint sound of sobs. If it was possible Draco felt even more digusted with himself and also confused. His mother cried for the loss of a muggle.

Before his head exploded he ran to his room and slammed the door shut and locked it. Then he jumped in his bed and started to sob. He felt so confused, so conflicted, so dirty. He thought the muggles were the beast, the animals, but what he saw down there was a small innocent little girl. A person. The only animals he saw were his father and his Death Eater buddies.

 _But his father had said that they were savages, a disease_ , apart of his brain shouted. But his heart and eyes were shouting just as intensely. _I know what I saw,_ they seemed to say, _the girl was innocent._

He didn't even know her name.

He didn't even know who was waiting out there for the little blue eyed girl to return to them.

He din't even know what to think anymore.

Eventually he cried himself to sleep. Now he was still pondering about what he should believe. Part of him wanted to believe his father just wasn't in his right mind tough he knew better. It was confirmed that he was in fact _happy_ about what had happened last night when he sat down at dining table and immediately started boasting about last night while giving Draco pleased looks.

Now he was still thinking about this later in the afternoon on his balcony. _I'll just wait a little longer until I pass judgement_ , Draco thought, _I'll wait until I get to Hogwarts and see how the mud-muggleborns are_. He was pleased with his decision and was finally at peace since last night.

"Draco! It's time to go dear!" Narcissa called.

Draco sighed. Hopefully new things for school would cheer him up. _Maybe I'll even meet Harry Potter_ , he thought excitedly. He heard The Boy Who lived was a halfblood. Despite the fact his father was against him Draco had always admired him. As a baby he was able to defeat the most powerful dark wizard around and that by itself was amazing.

"Draco dear hurry up!" shouted his mother.

Draco chanced one more look at the brave eagle flying circles around the Quidditch pitch before heading out his room to meet his mother, hoping that today would be a good day.

* * *

Hermione Jane Grange was a clever girl. She noticed everything and knew about everything an eleven year-old girl could know. So when her letter to Hogwarts came she was a bit skeptical. How is it possible that something of this magnitude of importance slipped past her? So she brushed it off as a prank. It was after all more likely than a magic school. The kids in her neighborhood didn't like her and often did things like this anyway.

 _She is strange_ , they would say, _who reads books instead of going out to recess_. Hermione didn't mind though. She was comforted by the tales and myths that she surrounded her self with. All that mattered was that her parents loved her, cared for her the same way she cared for them. If a few bullies had a problem they could shove it up their arse.

So imagine her surprise when she let a stray cat in to feed like she usually does and the animal turned into a women with a letter in her hand. The woman's name was Minerva McGonagall and she would be her Transfiguration professor at Hogwarts. She explained everything about magic and even demonstrated by turning Hermione's book into a doll that looked strangely similar to Alice from _Alice in Wonderland._

After that she left Hermione was ecstatic. This explained all the strange things that have happened around her. Like that time she was angry at a group of kids for pushing her books to the ground outside and a ton of humming birds came and attacked them. Also that one time she turned her teachers hair purple for ignoring her raised hand in class.

I hope I fit in, thought Hermione. She was going to Diagon Alley today and would see her first glimpse of magic ever. She clutched the Alice doll close to her chest and danced around her room happily. She couldn't wait to see what the world had to offer her.

* * *

Harry James Potter stood next to Hagrid in front of the entrance to Diagon Alley marveling over what happened the last week. All the letters and a half giant were telling him who he was. Harry Potter, son of James and Lily Potter, Savior of the Wizarding World.

Harry snorted to himself. He felt far from some savior. He felt like he had finally gone insane. He was half expecting someone to come out and say: "Gotcha! Can't believe you fell for that." Or better yet, a group to take him to an asylum for dreaming up such preposterous things. But he was awake, and as far as he knew sane, so Harry just decided to go with the flow and accept what was happening.

He hoped that when he got to the Wizarding World people would treat him like an equal and not royalty, but he knew the chances were unlikely. Despite the fact that his parents were murdered he thought this was the greatest day of his life. He just wished that he was raised by his parents. I would have been raised in a loving family, Harry thought, I could have been around all the magic I wanted. But alas that ship has sailed. Now Harry would make the best of this moment.

Without Dudley around he could make real friends. Friends who would play chess with him and walk to class with him and care for him. Harry smiled at the thought before he was distracted by the brick wall moving away to reveal his first glimpse of magic.

Harry's jaw dropped.

"Woah!"

* * *

Little did the three children know that their life would change forever that day and that the strongest bond ever would grow amongst them. The bond that would make the most powerful team the Wizarding World has ever seen since the Founders.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Thank you to those who already started reading my story! Here's the next chapter.**

Draco: Flourish & Blotts

Draco looked around impatiently for the last book on the supply list. He found nearly all of them and was yet to find _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection_. The books were starting to get heavy on his arms and there was no one to help him carry them. His mum was downstairs looking for a new Potions book while his dad was at Borgin  & Burkes. _Probably finding an instrument to use on muggles,_ Draco thought and scowled with discontent.

It always happened. Lucius promised him a new object of interest and Draco grew happy that he had something new to show off to his friends. Then as soon as he got what he wanted Lucius took off again. Leaving him alone to play with his things, with no one to share his joy with. Occasionally his mother would come and cheer him up by taking him to his friends house and promising another treat when he came back, but it just wasn't the same as having a father to talk about certain things that guys only discussed.

Draco just wished his father acted more like Blaise's. Blaise always told stories about how his dad took him out to Quidditch games and on trips to Bulgaria, Italy, Paris etc. Whenever they go to another country Draco just sat in the hotel room while his father went out for business and his mother went to shop. And sure, his father took him to Quidditch games but they never actually talked or acted excited when the team they favored won. 'A Malfoy does not hop around like a hooligan,' he would say with disgust as he sneered at the other people doing exactly that during the games, 'we behave with more respect and bow.'

Bow, bow, _bow._ Who the bloody hell _bows_ during a Quidditch game? Though he acted like he agreed with his father and sneered at other people right along with him, on the inside he felt like he would blow his top. Don't get him wrong, he enjoyed being at the top of the social pyramid, it made him feel important, but sometimes he wished he could just be normal.

Draco's thoughts distracted him from his task for awhile. So when he felt the impact of another person slam into him he was unprepared and tumpled down to the floor, the rest of his books coming down with him.

Draco already was in a foul enough mood and that fall was his breaking point. He whipped his head toward the cause of his situation and was prepared to throw a tantrum when he froze.

 _She is beautiful_

Standing before him was a girl, about his age, wearing baggy jeans and a red jumper with Chuck Taylors on her feet. She had sparkling amber eyes and a cute button nose with freckles dusting across it. She had wild brown hair that surrounded her head like a halo. She was different.

Throughout Draco's childhood he only ever met girls that were pureblood, girls that his parents wanted him to marry. Girls like Pansy Parkinson. Same style, same look, same everything. It's not that they weren't pretty, it was just that they were all pretty terrible on the inside. They all agree with blood purity and are basically copies of each other. Draco was sure they would grow out of it eventually but for now he wouldn't consider getting involved with any of them. This girl however was different, Draco could feel it. He was…. excited.

"Oh My Gosh! I am so sorry!" the girl said to him. She dropped down to her knees and started to help him collect the books he had dropped. Draco could only stare at her with mild surprise. If this ever happened around any of his friends they would just walk off or briefly apologize to him while waiting for him to pick up his books by himself. No one he knew would have stopped to help him pick up his books.

Once the girl picked up all the books she looked at him again. She frowned. "Are you all right?"

Only then did Draco realize he was staring he flushed and looked away feeling embarrassed. If his parents were here they would scold him for forgetting his manners. "I'm fine," he mumbled in reply. Draco snuck a quick look at the girl again and found that she was smiling at him, revealing her slight overbite which made her seem even more endearing. If possible he turned even redder. He'd never reacted this way to anyone before and so far this experience has been truly humiliating. He felt like an idiot. The girl didn't seem to mind, thankfully.

While Draco tried to pull himself together the girl seemed to look over his books. Her smile widened which made Draco's stomach start to flutter.

"You're a first year too," she said. She seemed pleased and for some reason that made Draco happy. He nodded slowly, not sure where she was going with this. "I'm glad I ran to someone else in my year, I have so many questions." She held her hand out to shake. "My name's Hermione. Hermione Granger."

And just like that Draco's heart sank. He didn't recognize the name, so she couldn't be a pureblood or a halfblood. Hermione was a muggleborn. His parents would be so mad at him for even staying in her presence that long without insulting her at least once. His father would beat him for even thinking such flattering thoughts of her.

Then his mind flashed to last night. To the blue-eyed muggle girl who he witnessed tortured and murdered. The way she looked at him like a monster. He fought with the side of himself that wanted to be a so-called 'honorable' pureblood'. He promised himself that he would give muggleborns a chance and he wasn't about to back out of that promise.

"My name is Malfoy, Draco Malfoy," he stated as he shook her hand. Hermione threw her head back and laughed. Draco stared at her again, mesmerized. At that moment he promised he would do everything to make her laugh over and over and over again.

"You sound like James Bond," She exclaimed, her eyes glittering with mirth. Draco tilted his head to the side confused. Who was this James Bond? He decided to ask and Hermione's expression turned from amused to shocked.

"You don't know who James Bond is?" she asked disbelievingly. Draco tried not to show that he was embarrassed but he was sure he failed miserably. Great, now he seemed even more like an idiot. Draco knew it was most likely a muggle thing and it wasn't unusual to be unaware of things like this but he could only think of how he looked in her eyes. To save himself from his embarrassment he decided to explain.

"I-I-I'm pureblood," he stammered. _Malfoys don't stutter_ , he could almost hear his father recite in his head, _we speak loudly and clearly for all to hear_. Hermione nodded her head understanding displayed on her face. Draco was fascinated once again by how different Hermione was to the people he knew. Everything she felt showed on her face. She wore her heart on her sleeve. Draco found that to be strangely comforting.

"Professor McGonagall told me about the different blood statuses of this world. Mugleborn, halfblood and pureblood right." Draco nodded. "Then your family has been involved with magic for generations!" Hermione was suddenly animated. "This is even better than I expected. How is your culture like? Is there any sort of fiction in the Wizarding World? What sports do you like to play? How do you travel? How is the Muggle world different from the Magic one?"

As Hermione continued to fire questions at him she drew closer and closer until their faces were merely inches apart, they were practically breathing the same air. Hermione breath fell on his cheek as he inhaled and he smelled peppermint. Draco's heart was beating harshly in his chest because of his proximity to the muggleborn girl.

Hermione seemed to realize how close she was and drew back quickly, a rose like color appearing on her cheeks. She tucked her hair behind her ear and cleared her throat nervously.

"Sorry, sometimes I get a bit intense," Hermione admitted sheepishly. Draco didn't mind though. He didn't seem to mind a lot of things when it came to Hermione Granger.

"It's alright," Draco said gently, "I don't really know much about muggles. My parents say that their…"

He trailed off. Hermione's look of happiness had turned into a look of disappointment. _Stupid, stupid,_ stupid _Draco_ , he thought to himself. He didn't mean to hurt her feelings. He only talked about what he would usually talk about with his friends. _And that's the problem_ , he chastised himself, _she's not one of your rich friends. You have to be gentle._

Hermione smiled sadly and stood up. "It's alright. Professor McGonagall told me about what you call people like me." She stared at her lap for a moment then looked at him shyly through her hair. "You don't think I'm filthy blooded, do you?"

"I think you're brilliant," Draco said a little bit too quickly and shot up from his place on the floor. This surprised him yet it didn't surprise him, if that made sense. Hermione was the first muggleborn he met yet she seemed perfectly alright to him. She seemed intelligent and kind and she had a great laugh and he liked everything about her in general. "I mean you're the first muggleborn I've met and you don't seem filthy at all."

Hermione let out a laugh again and Draco relaxed. He said the right thing. "Thanks, I guess." She looked down and picked up his books. "Can you help me find these books? I don't really know what I'm doing."

Draco brightened immediately. Spending more time with Hermione seemed like a wonderful idea. A bonus would be learning more about the muggle world. Seeing it from another perspective. "Sure."

Hermione handed the books back to Draco and they walked back the way he came. While they were getting books they talked about they're lives. Hermione talked about how instead of using potions to fix their teeth they had dentists, and that her parents are some of these dentists. Apparently they were very popular and did the teeth of several celebrities including the Queen of England. Draco was impressed with how muggles managed without magic but was grateful he didn't need to put medal in his mouth to fix his teeth. Hermione had laughed but agreed with him.

He also learned about her love of books. Draco thought that was great because he secretly enjoyed books as well, not to the extent of Hermione's love, but close enough. None of his friends cared about a good read, so he had no one to talk to about books. With Hermione he could do that freely. In turn Draco told of how his father worked in the ministry and had connections with nearly everyone in the Wizarding World. He also told her of some magic customs including Quidditch. Hermione seemed appalled by the sport.

"How could you possibly fly on something as unstable as a broom?" she had asked.

"A broom is actually surprisingly stable," Draco had replied, "It's like riding a bike." Hermione had also explained a few things muggles liked to do like biking, skateboarding, and football. "You just have to have the right grip and balance and it's easy. Sure you may get injured, but that could easily happen with other sorts of magic too."

Hermione seemed to agree with him as soon as he explained it. In fact, instead of being terrified of it like she was before, she seemed excited to try it at school.

Too soon they found all their books and paid for it at the counter. Draco and Hermione shuffled awkwardly in one place, attempting to stay near each other. Finally Hermione spoke. "Do you want to join me, my parents, and Professor McGonagall?"

Draco was ecstatic, definitely not opposed to spending more time with his new friend. Until he remembered that he should ask his mum first. Last night she didn't seem as against muggles and muggleborns. Hell, she even cried for the muggle girl. However, he wasn't sure how she would react to spending time with them. Draco decided to take a chance.

"Maybe. I'll have to ask my mum first." Draco said. Hermione smiled then headed off in the direction he presumed her parents were. Draco started towards his mother in the potions section feeling nervous. He hoped that she would agree. If she didn't he would continue to argue his case and annoy her until she relented. And if that didn't work, then he would go with hermione anyway. She seemed amazing and Draco was pretty sure he would regret it for the rest of his life if he didn't get to know her. Draco's plan decided, he felt much more confident. He swaggered the rest of his way towards his mother and found her sitting at a table reading a book. Draco tapped her on the shoulder. His mother turned around and smiled.

"There you are! I was waiting forever! Let's go to Madam Malkin's to get your robes."

"Actually Mother, I was asked to join my new friend, Hermione Granger to continue shopping," Draco stated bravely.

Narcissa arched and eyebrow. "I've never heard that name before. Is she halfblood?"

"No Mother, she is a muggleborn," Draco steeled his expression, awaiting any possible reaction.

Narcissa looked caught off guard. "Are you sure?" she asked.

Draco was astounded. She asked him as if she didn't want to believe what she was hearing. Draco became angry. Perhaps he was mistaken about his mother's expression from last night. "Mother, I'm going to hang out with Hermione whether you like it or not, I'm merely asking out of curtesy," Draco spat. He would not tolerate any bad talk about his new friend.

Narcissi was taken aback from her son's behavior. It looked as though she was going to yell at him but stopped suddenly. Something must have showed on his face that said Draco wasn't going to back down. Narcissi sighed, accepting that there was no way to convince him to defer from his decision.

"Alright," Narcissa said, and Draco's features immediately brightened. "But only if you keep this from your father. No one is to know of this except you and me."

Draco nodded solemnly, understanding his mother's words. If Lucius were to find out, Draco would never hear Hermione's wonderful laugh ever again.

* * *

Narcissa stood up and followed Draco over to where Hermione, her parents and Professor McGonagall were waiting. As soon as Hermione caught sight of Draco she brightened and waved at him. Draco smiled back and walked towards her eagerly. He hugged her as soon as she was close enough and buried his nose into her hair, inhaling her scent which he just noticed smelled of parchment and chocolate. Narcissa was surprised at the display of affection towards the muggleborn and Hermione's parents were too but the two first years didn't notice over their chatter.

Narcissa looked at her former teachers and the two muggles warily. The first one to talk was Mrs. Granger. "Hello Mrs. Malfoy. My name is Emma and this is my husband Dan."

Narcissa smiled politely. "My name is Narcissa. I heard you two are dentist."

And just like that they hit it off. They started talking about their jobs and annoying people they had encountered that day. While the Malfoys and Grangers talked Professor McGonagall looked on in approval. Ever since she has known the Malfoys and Blacks all she had seen of them were muggle hating, coldhearted, crooks. Now, however she saw people ready to take a chance, people who aren't so willing to bend to the will of their ancestors and society. If she didn't see it herself she would have laughed at anyone who told her of what she was seeing, that a group of bigoted pureblood were enjoying the company of muggles and muggleborns. A seed of hope was planted deep within Minerva McGonagall's being.

Perhaps muggles and wizards getting along wasn't impossible.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Thank you to those who already started reading my story! Here's the next chapter.**

Harry: Madam Malkin's

Harry stood alone on a platform in the robes shop. He looked around uncomfortably while the owner herself, Madam Malkin, made measurements on him for his 'robes'. Harry still frowned at the word. He didn't want to wear a dress for the rest of his life in the Wizarding World. He hoped it wasn't some messed up law the people here have. He could just imagine it to himself in his head. _Article blah blah of the British Wizarding World clearly states that all citizens wear robes for the rest of their existence._ Harry snorted to himself.

Harry looked at Hagrid hoping that, perhaps, he would share some answers and clear the air a bit. All he did was hold up two ice cream cones and grinned at him. Harry smiled back, annoyed yet grateful that Hagrid had showed up at the old shack in the middle of the sea to whisk him away to this world. _And this world seemed wonderful so far_ , he thought to himself.

It was true. Ever since he stepped through the brick wall everyone had been nothing but kind to him. Albeit, it probably just had to do with being the Chosen One, Defeater of Voldemort but they seemed like generally nice people. _That Quirrel bloke gave me the creeps though_ , Harry thought with a shiver.

Something about him just appeared… _wrong_. Some weird aura seemed to be radiating off him. Even though he appeared useless at first sight Harry saw right through him. After not being able to ask questions(due to Uncle and Aunty dearest) for his whole life and the mask his relatives put on for the guest that visited his house he learned to find answers for himself. This practice made him observant and vigilant. After all, it saved him from beatings courtesy of Dudley and his gang on many occasions.

There was something sinister in his Professor's eyes, and Harry was willing to bet it was connected to the package Hagrid picked up from Gringotts. Harry hoped so. He has loved mysteries ever since he went to the library for the first time and found various mystery books like Sherlock Holmes.

When Madam Malkin left to get different robes about his size the bell rang on the door. Harry turned his head on reflex to check out who entered the store. The first thing he saw was two kids, about his age. One was a girl dressed in similar clothes to his. She had bushy brown hair on her head and a radiant smile on her face. Harry tugged on his clothes self-consciously, aware of how baggy his clothes were compared to the girl. He was hoping to make new friends but that wouldn't happen if he looked like this. People tended to flock around others who were _normal_. Harry hoped that wasn't the case here. As the girl laughed at what the other person said Harry decided to look at them.

He looked sharp. Spiffy, if you wanted to be insulting. He was wearing the robes that everyone else seemed to wear in this world, except his looked to have better quality. He held a look of adoration on his face for the girl next to him who continued to laugh. _She must be important be to him_ , Harry mused. His blonde hair was gelled back on his head, a few strands falling in front of his gray eyes. The two seemed to be completely opposite but fit somehow. Harry hoped to have something like that with someone someday. A friend or something more than a friend.

When the girl stopped laughing Harry's attention was drawn to the four adults behind them. One of them was a beautiful woman that looked similar to the boy. The two other adults looked remarkably like the girl. One of them was wearing one of the weird hats he saw on display at one of the stores and purple robes. She had a thin-lipped look on her face. Harry wondered if she ever smiled.

Harry's attention returned to the two kids his age the same time the boy acknowledged Harry's presence. Their eyes met, green against silver. The boy seemed to tense up and grabbed the girl's hand. The girl realized his presence and smiled at Harry. Harry smiled back shyly. No one ever really gave him the time of day before, especially a girl.

The girl started to walk towards him but was pulled back by the boy. Harry noticed he had tightened his grip on her hand. The girl looked back and said something to the boy which caused him to let go of her hand reluctantly. The girl started towards him and Harry tensed, prepared to defend himself just in case. The girl looked at him curiously, then smiled.

Harry was confused. What did she want?

"You're a first year too." It wasn't a question, she said it as if it were a fact. Harry slowly nodded in affirmation not knowing what else to do. "I'm Hermione Granger." She held out her hand to shake.

Harry started to relax. Hermione didn't seem like a threat, in fact, she appeared very friendly. He shook his hand and smiled back at her. "I'm Harry Potter."

Everyone's eyes widened in surprise except for Hermione's and her parents'. Harry was afraid of this reaction, for he didn't want anyone to be his friend because he was the Boy Who Lived but because he was Harry, just Harry.

"Nice to meet you Harry," Hermione said with a warm smile. Harry relaxed, she didn't appear to care who he was, it was either that or she was unaware of who he was.

"You're Harry Potter? _The_ Harry Potter?" the boy asked in disbelief. Harry smile became fixed as he told him that yes, he was indeed the boy who lived.

Hermione elbowed the boy beside her, causing him to wince. Harry couldn't help but feel satisfied. "Draco," she hissed. Then she turned to him again and looked him over with a little bit more interest in her eyes. "So you are the boy who defeated Voldemort?"

Everyone seemed to react again except Hermione and her parents. They all fidgeted and stared at the air as if expecting the dark wizard to suddenly show up and kill everyone. Hermione looked at Draco disapprovingly. "Fear of a name only increases fear of a thing itself."

Harry stared at her a moment like everyone else. Then a grin broke out on his face. Harry had a feeling they were going to be great friends. Draco seemed to break out of his shock and introduced himself officially. "I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."

Hermione snorted from beside him and Harry broke out laughing. "You sound like James Bond," Harry managed to wheeze. Hermione smiled at him. "That's what I said.

Draco just seemed confused but brushed it off. Finally Madam Malkin appeared from the back of the shop and attended to everyone's robes. Hermione was taken to the back while Harry and Draco were attended to in front. While they were by themselves Draco talked to Harry about a magic sport called Quidditch. Harry was interested. Back at the Dursley household he was never allowed to do extracurricular activities because his Aunt and Uncle feared he would show up Dudley somehow or act freakish. This was his chance to finally do something other than study and sit in his cupboard.

Draco started to talk to Harry about Houses. "I'll be in Slytherin of course, my whole family was in that house."

"What does Slytherin stand for?" Harry asked.

Draco seemed to hesitate. "It stands for the being cunning and ambitious. Going to any means to meet an end."

Harry thought it sounded alright until the last line. It gave him shivers down his spine. Something about it seemed to irk him, in a personal level. As if the house was a person he met in his nightmares. Harry shook the feeling of and decided to ask about other houses.

He learned that Hufflepuff was for the loyal(though Draco didn't seem to take this house seriously), Ravenclaw was for the intelligent, and Gryffindor was for the brave(Draco said it was for idiots, but Harry thought that was a bit biased considering the house rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin).

When the boys finally got the robes they needed Hermione was waiting for them along with the adults outside. Draco immediately headed towards her side and Harry followed him over to the group. After Harry was properly introduced to the adults which only went strangely when Mrs. Malfoy seemed to analyze Harry. Harry met her gaze and they had a stare off. Harry scowled a bit, he was not about to let anyone step all over him here as they did in the muggle world. Finally, Narcissi averted her eyes, Harry's glower appearing to be too much for her. The moment passed and the tension dissipated, though a few odd looks were shot at him from Draco. Hermione asked if he wanted to join them to get the rest of their supplies.

Harry looked at Hermione's hopeful expression then looked at Draco to see if he was alright with him tagging along. Draco's expression seemed to be impassive but his eyes gave him away. There was a tiny glint of hope in his eyes and Harry only recognized it because that was the look Harry saw every time he looked at the mirror at the Dursley's before he went to school, hoping for a new friend. Harry looked at Hermione again and saw the same look in her eyes.

"Sure, I just need to tell Hagrid."

When Harry brought up the situation to Hagrid he seemed ecstatic. When they came back they headed down the street of Diagon Alley and talked amiably about what they think Hogwarts would be like. While they talked Harry realized Hermione was a muggleborn and Draco was a pureblood which didn't bother him at all though they phrased it as though it was a big deal. They also laughed about Narcissa's discomfort with Hagrid's proximity as quietly as possible in order to not upset Narcissa anymore than she already was because of how close Hagrid was to her.

Finally they reached Ollivanders Wand Shop. Since there was apparently not enough room inside so Hermione's and Draco's parents had to wait outside. When they entered the shop they immediately were met by the smell of dust and mold. Hermione started coughing while Harry and Draco waved their hands in front of their noses. An old man hobbled out from the back of the store but froze when he caught sight of the three children.

"Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, And Draco Malfoy. I have waited for this day for twenty years."

The three exchanged curious looks while Hagrid and McGonagall eyed the old man warily. Ollivander then turned to the adults. "I trust your wand will do well transfiguration this year."

The Professor gave him a small smile. "I hope this year goes as well as the last."

Ollivander addressed Hagrid. "And how are you holding up Rubeus, without your wand?"

"Just fine, thank you," Hagrid replied gruffly. The three kids noticed Hagrids grip tighten on his umbrella.

"Let's get started."

Draco went first and went through about 60 wands, 5 books in the head and an explosion before they found the right one. 10" made with hawthorn wood and a unicorn hair core."

Draco waved the wand and silver and gold sparks filled the air. Harry and Hermione stared in wonder. "Woah!" Hermione said. They both started clapping. Draco gave a mock bow and returned to their side.

Hermione went next and went through the same amount of wands as Draco, a dust tornado and a shattered window before she found her wand. 10" made with vine wood and a dragon heartstring core.

When Hermione waved her wand red gold and purple figurines danced through the air. Draco and Harry clapped loudly and Draco looked in awe at Hermione, which did not go unnoticed by Harry. Hermione blushed and curtseyed then took her place by Draco's side.

Finally it was Harry's turn. He had to go through nearly 90 wands, a minor earthquake and a flood in the shop before he found his wand. 11" made with holly wood and a phoenix feather core."

Harry waved his wand and a red and green basilisk flew slithered around the room. This time everyone clapped and stared in awe at Harry's creation. Harry petted the King of the serpents and bowed which caused it to disappear. Harry beamed proudly to himself. _This felt like home,_ he thought to himself. When he waved the found it felt like the force of his emotions, good and bad, came out of the wand and into something beautiful. It felt like for once, Harry was in control

"Oh bravo! Yes,indeed, oh, very good. Well, well, well… how curious…how very curious..," Ollivander said.

"What's curious?" Harry asked.

"I remember every wand I've ever sold, Mr. Potter. Every single wand. It so happens that the phoenix whose tail feather is in your wand, gave another feather—just one other. It is very curious indeed that you should be destined for this wand when its brother why, its brother gave you that scar."

All noise seized. Harry swallowed nervously, Draco paled and Hermione had a look of muted horror on her face along with a look of contemplation.

When they were done purchasing the wands they walked out the store hastily.

"That place creepped me out." Hermione said with a shiver. Draco reached out for her hand and Hermione took it.

Harry couldn't help but point out his observations. "It felt like he knew something we didn't."

"Yeah with the 'I've been waiting twenty years line'. What the bloody hell was that supposed to mean?" Draco agreed. Hermione made to swipe at him but he ducked in time.

"I don't know," Hermione said after she let go of Draco's swearing. "But I have a feeling we will find out later."

They walked the rest of the way to the exit in a content silence. Harry looked at Hermione and Draco and smiled to himself. He was glad that he was able to make new friends already. And Harry had a feeling they would be great friends.

The trio separated reluctantly and headed home. Hermione hugged Harry first(which gave him a warm feeling) and then hugged Draco. When she released him Draco had a sparkle in his eyes and a soft smile blanketed his face. _Oh yeah_ , Harry thought with a smirk, _there was definitely something going on there_.

Hagrid and Harry exited the magical alley but before it disappeared behind the brick rock Harry looked back.

 _I'll come back,_ Harry thought, _I'll come back home._ Then the wall closed.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Thank you to those who already started reading my story! Here's the next chapter.**

Hermione: Platform 9 ¾

Hermione walked through the crowds of the station at a fast pace, her dress flowing behind her while her parents tried to keep up with her with her bags. She looked around in excitement, hoping to catch a glimpse of her friends or the wall that lead to the Hogwarts Express. Just thinking about magic made her insides hum, as if the school was calling out to her.

 _We can't be late this time,_ Hermione had said, _if we miss the train there is no way to get to Hogwarts._

Her parents of course said that they were always on time. Which was true, Hermione Granger was never late, but this time there was something truly challenging to look forward to. Magic.

Also this was the first time Hermione made any friends. Hermione was sure she would be an outcast in this society because she wasn't raised there. She was a muggleborn, which was apparently, one of the lowest of the low. Hermione was prepared to have to prove herself before making any friends. She was used to this kind of behavior. It wasn't any different then her school in the Muggle World. Who would want to hang out with a know-it-all muggleborn?

But then she ran into Draco at the bookstore. The first person to understand her rants and quirks. The first person to ever give her the time of day.

Hermione was a bit confused at first. When she talked to him he seemed a bit quiet. But then they got to know each other and Hermione realized that they were well suited together as friends. _Not to mention he was cute,_ Hermione thought with a blush. His grey eyes nearly took her breath away.

Draco seemed to like her as much as she liked him. He even enjoyed talking about the Muggle World, despite the fact that his parents are blood supremacist.

Suddenly a boy with raven black hair came into sight. He was talking to a security and it seemed the conversation was not going his way. "Are you sure you never heard of platform 9 ¾?"

The security guard rolled his eyes. "Stop wasting my time kid."

The raven haired boy slumped his shoulder and turned around revealing a be-speckled face, a white owl and a cart full of Hogwarts items.

"Harry!" Hermione yelled waving her hand in the air. "Over here!" She faltered a bit when she noticed his relatives weren't there. Were they not excited for Harry? After thinking about it she decided to drop it. She would question him when she knew more.

Harry looked around in confusion before he caught sight of her. The he smiled his crooked smile and started towards her. "Thank God I found you. Hagrid forgot to tell me where platform 9 ¾ is located."

 _Now this_ , Hermione thought _, was unacceptable_. She loved Hagrid, really she did. He was a gigantic(literally) teddy bear. But the half-giant's head could wander. What was the Headmaster thinking?

Harry greeted her parents and they continued on their way. Hermione and Harry chatted about what they thought Hogwarts would be like. "Did you read _Hogwarts: A History_ by Bathilda Bagshot?"

Harry shook his head. "I was too busy reading the books on our subjects. I think Defense against the Dark Arts is somewhat interesting, don't you think?"

"Yes really it is quite fascinating. But you really haven't read _Hogwarts: A History_? It talks about your parents in it."

Harry abruptly stops mid-step. "It talks about my parents?" he asked, hope filling his voice.

"Oh yes!" Hermione said excitedly. She was happy to help her friend find out more about his parents. When they talked in Diagon Alley Harry had admitted to not knowing much about the Wizarding World or his parents, though he didn't explain why. Ever since then Hermione had vowed that she would help Harry however she could to find out more about his family. It just so happened she discovered some information about them in her favorite book. "Apparently they were head boy and girl in 1977. Both were in Gryffindor and apparently your father was in a pranking group called the Marauders. Though I don't understand why, he had a responsibility." Hermione finished with a sniff of indignation. Harry however was not listening after the word 'Marauders'.

"What page is it on?" Harry asked, trying to conceal the emotion he was feeling.

"It was in the back of the book along with other past Heads and staff. I hope you're pleased with my-," Hermione was caught off by the weight of Harry's body colliding with hers in a ferocious hug.

"Thank you," Harry whispered, a slight tremor shaking his body.

"Your welcome," Hermione said with a soft smile. She didn't understand why Harry was so surprised. He, along with Draco, are her first friends. People who accepted her for who she was. She would do anything for those two with or without them asking.

Finally the two found the wall between platform 9 and 10. Hermione looked on excitedly while Harry and her parents looked skeptical.

"Are you sure this is the place?" Harry asked. Hermione could understand his feelings. They were already walking through a public space with questionable items and now they were going to attempt running through a wall. If this didn't work, the four of them would surely be thrown into the loony bin.

"Don't worry Harry. Professor McGonagall said that all we had to do was run through the wall. Also I seriously doubt that she would play a prank on us."

Harry nodded, agreeing with her completely. Professor McGonagall in all her uptightness held an air of seriousness around her.

"But what If someone sees us go through the wall?"

"I doubt that the wizards would forget that crucial detail Harry," Hermione said, close to being exasperated with her friend. The sooner they went through the wall the sooner they'll meet other witches and wizards their age. "Now c'mon, we'll go through together." She held out her hand and Harry reluctantly took it.

"If I'm going to look like a fool I'm glad I am doing it with you."

Hermione rolled her eyes at his comment. "On the count of three. One…"

"Two..," Harry said

"Three!" They yelled in unison then they ran straight ahead and through the wall with their eyes closed.

Hermione opened her eyes first and was immediately met with the sight of multiple people in robes and a train that said in the front, _The Hogwarts Express_.

Hermione let go of Harry's hand, overcome with wonder. "Brilliant."

At the word Harry opened his eyes, then they widened just as her eyes probably had. "Cool!"

Hermione's parents showed up behind them. Emma Granger had her eyes closed and a vice grip on Hermione's things while Dan Granger had a hold on Harry's things, a look of amazement on his face.

"Please tell me we're not stuck in the wall, Danny," Mrs. Granger said. Dan put a hand on her shoulder while Hermione and Harry snickered quietly to themselves.

"No, dear, we made it to the train," he said.

Mrs. Granger finally opened her eyes and they immediately sparkled with wonder. "I wish I was able to see things like this everyday."

The Granger couple turned towards Hermione and Harry. "I guess this is where we leave you," Mr. Granger said.

Suddenly Emma started bursting out advice. "Make sure you manage your money well. Keep up with your studies. Owl us at least once every week. Don't go looking for trouble. And most importantly-"

"Don't get expelled. I know, mum," Hermione said.

Mrs. Granger's eyes started to tear up and she hugged Hermione. "Oh I'm going to miss you so much." Hermione hugged her back as she started to tear up as well. She was going to miss her parents so much.

Mrs. Granger released her and whipped her eyes. She then turned to Harry and hugged him. Harry tensed up, as though shocked at being on the receiving end of a hug. "Take care of yourself, Harry. Okay?"

After getting over the shock Harry nodded his head. Mrs. Granger let him go and gave the both of them a watery smile.

Mr. Granger then embraced Hermione. "Good luck, kiddo. And don't forget, it's okay to have a little fun."

Hermione smiled. "Okay, Dad."

After the heartfelt goodbyes Hermione and Harry entered the train and looked for their own compartment. Eventually they settled down and talked excitedly about what was to come. They waited for Draco to show up, even checking out their compartment every once in a while until the train started moving.

A chubby boy showed up at their compartment door looking quite nervous. Since it was obvious he wasn't going to say anything to them first Hermione decided to engage him in conversation.

"Hullo, is there something we could help you with?"

The boy turned red in the face. "Have you seen a toad hopping around here?'

Harry removed his gaze from Hedwig and glanced at Hermione a confused glint in his eyes. Hermione shrugged her shoulders. "No we haven't seen a toad. Why do you ask?"

The boy's eyes filled with frustration. "He's my pet, Trevor. He usually wanders around but never for this long. I'm worried about him."

Hermione and Harry shared a look. They silently decided to help him look for Trevor the Toad.

"We'll help you find him," Harry said.

The boys eyes lit up. "Oh thank you," he said, "My name is Neville Longbottom, by the way."

Hermione and Harry stood up from their seats. "I'm Hermione Granger and this is Harry," Hermione said.

Neville's eyes widened. "Harry, as in Harry Potter?"

Harry nodded his head, albeit reluctantly.

"Can you show me your scar?" Neville asked, excitement within his words.

Harry moved his hair, revealing his lightening scar. Neville seemed to shake with excitement but deflated when he saw the grimace on Harry's face. "Sorry, I realize you probably don't want to flaunt the scar you got the night of your parents death."

Neville winced as he realized how rude his words sounded. "I mean-"

"It's okay, Neville," Harry said, "I've been getting that reaction a lot lately. But it's Harry. Just Harry."

Neville nodded his head. "Okay. Sorry."

And with that they set off Neville in one direction and Hermione and Harry in another. They stopped at every compartment to ask but every time it was a negative. They ran into twin redheads whose names were Fred and George. Though when they walked in the twins invited them to stay with a mischievous look in their eyes.

"Trust me we don't bite, do we Forge?" asked George, or Fred.

"No we don't my good-looking twin," responded Fred, or George.

"Anyway, you want to have a jelly bean?" one of the twins asked while the other twin grinned mischievously, almost evilly. The bean was releasing steam, not really noticeable to the untrained eye, but the duo caught the detail.

After that Hermione and Harry thought that it would be smart for them to make a quick exit.

Finally the showed up at a compartment with two redheads and a black boy. One redheaded boy seemed to be trying out a spell on a rat. Hermione immediately sat down to watch and Harry sat down next to her.

"Well let's see it then," Hermione said impatiently.

The boy appeared nervous but continued on with the spell. Hermione and Harry were at the edge of their seats.

"Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow."

Nothing happened. The rat continued snoring, unaware of what was happening around it.

Hermione was not impressed. Neither was Harry. "That was no spell. Who told you about it?" Harry questioned.

"My brothers. Fred and George."

Suddenly everything made sense.

"Well they obviously lied to you. This is what a real spell looks like. Harry can I please borrow your glasses?" Hermione asked.

Harry trusted her and handed them over.

" _Reparo_." Harry's glasses were suddenly fixed. The broken glass unbroken and the rims no longer crooked. The boys stared in awe. "I'm Hermione, by the way. And this is Harry."

The three boys attention was captured by Harry. "Harry, as in Harry Potter?" asked the redhead with the false spell. Harry nodded his head a look of exasperation on his face.

Unlike Neville, the boys didn't seem to pick up on Harry's mood. "Do you have the scar?" The black boy asked. Harry once again, reluctantly flashed his scar for them to see.

"Wicked," The Irish boy commented. "I'm Seamus Finnigan. This is Dean Thomas," he said pointing at the black boy, "And that's Ronald Weasley," he said pointing at the other redhead still seemed awed by Harry's presence. Harry shifted uncomfortably in place and cleared his throat.

"Well we better be off then," Harry said, "We still need to look for toad named Trevor. It was nice meeting you."

Apparently this excuse did not phase the three boys. They all bid each other farewell and Hermione and Harry exited the compartment.

"Finally," Harry sighed in relief, "I thought we couldn't get out of there fast enough. They were all too busy staring at my scar to notice me."

"Oh it wasn't that bad." Harry shot her a look. "Ok maybe it was that bad. But they all seemed like all right blokes. Though Ronald seemed a bit thick."

While Harry and Hermione continued to chat they ran into Neville again and they decided to head back to the compartment while Neville continued to look for Trevor. Hermione had a feeling she will see a lot more of Neville Longbottom at Hogwarts.

Harry decided he needed to use the bathroom and he said that he would meet her at the compartment. Hermione continued to walk lost in her thoughts until she ran into someone. The person fell to the ground and Hermione winced at the sound of the impact.

"I'm really sorry. This has been happening a lot-" Hermione suddenly realized exactly who she ran into. "Draco?"

The boy lifted his head and his eyes widened. "Hermione?" He stood up and stared at her, taking in her presence. "I really hope this doesn't become a regular thing."

Hermione squealed and threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Draco wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his nose into her hair. Hermione could have sworn that he sniffed it. She pulled back slightly and grinned at him. "Where were you? Harry and I were looking everywhere."

Draco sighed. "I had to shake off the friends my dad set me up with. Blood supremacist. Which reminds me of what I wanted to talk to you about."

Hermione nodded. "C'mon, let's go back to the compartment me and Harry are staying in.

They walked back together and chatted about what they've been doing for the last week. Draco apparently spent it having his head drilled with proper manners so he behaved like a upper class pureblood. Hermione laughed because of the disgruntled look on his face.

When they entered the compartment they found Harry eating a ton of wizard sweets. He looked up at the sound of the door opening. "There you are! I've been waiting forever." Then he noticed Draco. "Where have you been, mate?"

Draco opened his mouth to explain but Harry cut him off. "You know what? It doesn't matter. Hermione you've got to try these sweets."

Hermione was hesitant to try any of the treats. Harry realized that and rolled her eyes. "You're parents aren't here, they'll never know."

Hermione's resolve broke and she sat down, eagerly asking for the jellybeans. Draco chuckled and sat down next to her and asked for a chocolate frog.

Eventually when they finished Harry dosed off. Hermione was in the middle of a rant about how it was unfair that they put such disgusting flavors in the bag the same color as the good ones when Draco looked at Hermione with a serious expression on his face. "We need to talk."

Hermione conceded and fell silent, looking at him expectantly trying to mask the nervousness she felt. She hoped he wouldn't say that he didn't want to be friends anymore, for she enjoyed his company. To lose her first friends for no matter how briefly, would be devastating.

"I still want to be friends with you," Hermione sagged with relief, "But," Hermione tensed up again, "We are going to have to be subtle about it. My so-called friends will surely become suspicious if I become friends with a muggleborn and will report to my Father. I have no doubt that I could contain the situation but we shouldn't take chances. I don't want to even think about what he might do to you if he found out." A dark look took over his face and Hermione frowned. She didn't like that look on his face.

She took a hold of his hand and the look immediately left his face. "Don't worry. We'll make sure nothing like that happens to us. You can trust me."

Draco smiled. "I know. I trust you."

Hermione turned towards the window after hearing rushing feet outside their compartment. A huge, beautiful castle loomed in the distance. Hermione gaped at the sight.

"Is that-"

"Yeah," Draco said, "That's Hogwarts."

Draco and Hermione continued to look in the distance for a few minutes before the thought crossed their minds to wake up Harry. He shot up from his position, glasses askew and hair even more messy than usual. Hermione and Draco laughed at him and Harry scowled, fixing himself up before catching sight of Hogwarts.

"That's amazing."

They sat there for a moment in comfortable silence before Hermione broke it. "We should probably get dressed."

Hermione left for the compartment and got dressed for school along with a few other girls. She looked them over and realized they would probably be her future classmates. She also realized she would most definitely _not_ fit in with most of these girls. Thank God for Draco and Harry.

She headed back to their compartment and found Harry sitting in their alone. She realized with a pang that Draco probably went back to his compartment. She sat down and saw that Harry was reading his Potions textbook.

Harry noticed the expression on her face and explained.

"Draco said that the Potions professor probably won't like me for whatever reason. So I'm trying to learn as much as possible in case he calls on me."

Hermione smiled. "It's good that you are trying to make a good impression."

Harry looked anxious. "Let's hope it pays off."

Eventually everyone exited off the train and walked to the docks. There were several boats waiting for them in the water. Hermione became nervous. Were they stable?

Harry grabbed her hand, squeezed it, and let it go. "Don't worry. They're probably secure."

Hermione nodded her head but the nervous feeling wouldn't go away. As they entered the boat Hermione looked for something to distract her mind and saw Neville standing awkwardly in the corner.

"Neville! Over here!"

When he caught sight of her he smiled gratefully and quickly entered the boat.

"Did you find Trevor yet?" Harry asked.

Neville's shoulders slumped. "No. I hope nothing happened to him."

Hermione and Harry comforted him, saying that eventually Trevor will come back when the boat suddenly moved. Hermione realized they probably used magic to move the boats at a certain time.

As they drew closer to the castle it seemed to come to life. Lights flooding every window and the sunset shining in the background giving Hogwarts a beautiful glow. As they floated in the water Hermione was sure that she saw a gigantic squid floating underneath them.

Finally they arrived at the castle and they stumbled out of they boats, met by the sight of a certain half giant. Hermione and Harry smiled. "Hagrid!" they greeted him.

"'Ello 'Arry, 'Ermione," then he greeted the students. "Come on you trot. We need to get to the castle."

The students walked in silence, awed by the castle and they stopped in front of the door. Professor McGonagall waited for them, as rigid as ever. "Thank you Hagrid."

"It was no problem, Minerva," Hagrid turned to them a large smile on his face. "See you around the castle."

Hagrid walked away and they were left alone with Professor McGonagall. There was a moment of silence before she opened her mouth.

"Welcome to Hogwarts."


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Thank you to those who are reading this story! Please review, I would appreciate feedback! Here's the next chapter.**

Draco: Hogwarts

"I expect that some of you will excel and some of you," McGonagall looked pointedly and a red haired boy with hand-me-downs and dirt on his nose, "Will struggle."

The red haired boy blushed a bright red and suddenly the pieces came together. Freckles all over his skin, hand-me-down robes, lacking class in general. Draco sneered in his direction. _Obviously a Weasley_ , Draco thought with disgust.

"However I am positive that all of you will make fine wizards and witches one day. Now-". McGonagall was cut off by a chubby boy's cry of relief.

"Trevor!" He ran forward to retrieve the toad that sat at Professor McGonagall's feet. When he picked the amphibian up he looked up and was immediately met by the sight of the woman looking down her nose at him, causing his skin to change the color of a tomato. As he sped back to his former spot Draco laughed along with a few of his childhood 'friends' and most likely his future housemates.

When Draco looked back at where the chubby boy stood he saw that Hermione stood beside him with a disapproving look directed towards him. He stopped laughing immediately and felt ashamed of himself. It was funny, anyone knew that, but the boy already felt embarrassed enough by the look McGonagall directed towards him.

He had promised himself he would look at the world with a different perspective, and he planned to keep the promise. _So that way I can look at the world freely_ , Draco thought, _so I won't hurt people like Hermione_.

"As I was saying,' the professor interrupted his thoughts and glowered at the meek boy at Hermione's side, "We will head into the Great Hall for you to be sorted into your houses. Please don't stray from the group, we don't need anymore stress added to the evening." And with that she turned on her heel and entered the school, the rest of the students trailing after her.

As they walked his childhood friends followed him like a lost puppy, waiting for commands. Draco couldn't blame them. It had always been like this. Even as a little one Draco always held more authority over the others. Over the years they just fell into that rhythm that was never broken. The only people that were even close to being considered Draco's equal was Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott. As children they hung around each other the most. Draco could almost consider them friends if they weren't so reserved with one another.

Eventual growing tired of the silence that consumed the small group of purebloods. Draco's eyes began to wander and caught sight of Hermione talking animatedly with the children surrounding her. She captured everyone's attention with her waving hands and her hair curling around her head because of the excitement she radiated. She seemed to glow in that moment. Draco knew, in that moment that one day she would be great. One day, she would be glorious.

Draco yearned to go over to her and talk about anything and everything. There were so many things he wanted to tell her, so many things that he knew she would want to know about the Wizarding World.

Draco wanted to prepare Hermione as much as possible for the trouble that would surely be fall upon her for the rest of her magical life. He knew now that it was unfair to assume that muggleborns would know about the customs of their world as soon as they enter it. Draco felt that it was his job to help Hermione as much as he possibly could. He didn't want to fail her. For some reason after only a few days of knowing the girl, failing her felt like the worst thing in the world.

Before he could ponder this thought further he was jolted from his thoughts by the screams of his future classmates. Draco immediately snapped to attention and reached for his wand(though he knew no spells). When he spotted the cause of the screams he relaxed. A few ghosts past by waving merrily, welcoming them as warmly as ghost could.

Students continued to cower in fear but Draco just looked on with a amused and curious look pasted on his face. Ghost always confused him. Why the hell would they stay in this world when they were welcomed in the afterlife. The only other people that expressed Draco's curiosity were Hermione and Harry. They both looked at the ghosts as if they wanted to figure them out. The gleam in their eyes almost exactly the same, with Hermione's holding a bit more eagerness.

Looking at them now, Draco was reminded of his lack of insight. Two weeks ago, he thought that people of Hermione's nature didn't deserve magic. Two weeks ago, he viewed Harry Potter as a god. The sort of bloke you would invite to your birthday party to show off like a trophy. He was only enlightened because he happened to run into them before Hogwarts.

He didn't know if it was fate or if it was chance, but he didn't really care. The only thing that mattered was that he gained two new friends.

They finally reached the Great Hall. Everyone looked on in awe, even Draco(though he would never admit it). There are four long tables placed vertically for the students and one long table placed horizontally for the teachers. Hufflepuff to the far left, then Slytherin, then Ravenclaw and finally Gryffindor. The ceiling showed the sky outside, bright stars gleaming in the dark night. _Absolutely beautiful_ , Draco thought. Vaguely he could hear Hermione explaining how the ceiling worked to everyone.

As they walked by the older students they stared at them curiously, and whispered among themselves. From what Draco was able to hear, they were mostly curious about Harry. Apparently the whole school knew that Harry was coming this year.

Draco scoffed at them. _Obsessive imbeciles, do they have nothing better to do with their lives._ Draco did not think of the fact that he used to be like them.

Draco looked at the staff table and met his godfather's eyes. Severus nodded at him in greeting and went back to his conversation with the lady sitting next to him. Draco smiled wryly at the gesture. His godfather was a man of few words, and he could be cold at times, but you can't say he doesn't care.

Draco continued looking through the teachers until a timid looking teacher capture his attention. He sat hunched over his plate and looking around franticly like a caged animal. He had a purple turban on his head and wore purple robes to match. At the sight of him Draco raised an eyebrow. What was the Headmaster thinking hiring this man as a professor?

Speaking of the Headmaster, Dumbledore stood up from his seat and immediately everyone fell silent. Draco looked around the room and disbelief, though he expected this. Albus Dumbledore, defeater of Grindewald and the most powerful wizard since Merlin. Draco knew he was respected, but enough to silence a gigantic room full of children? Now that was impressive.

Dumbledore began to speak. "Let's welcome our students with round of applause!"

Everyone started clapping enthusiastically. A few people stood up just to be dramatic, including twin redheads which Draco could have sworn were Weasleys. Draco would have blushed if he wasn't raised the way he was. Instead he puffed his chest out a little and stood proudly. When the applause died out Dumbledore continued to speak.

"Now let's start the Sorting. Minerva, if you would?"

Professor McGonagall nodded her head and walked over to a stool in front of the teachers' table. A ratty hat sat on top of it. Draco immediately knew it was the Sorting Hat. His father told him stories about it, how it has been around since the days of the Founders. If Draco could, he would ask it some questions to it about all the things it has seen. For example: Do you recall how you were made? How do you know where we will belong? Is it possible for us to belong to another house overtime? Did you know Voldemort would become the next Dark Lord?

The hat sang a little song about all the characteristics of the different houses. Hufflepuff for the loyal. Ravenclaw for the intelligent. Gryffindor for the brave and Slytherin for the cunning and sly.

Professor McGonagall started calling names. "Abbott, Hannah!"

A shy looking girl nervously sat down on the stool and the hat was place over her head, covering her eyes. A few seconds later the hat yelled, "Hufflepuff!"

"Bones, Susan!"

Another girl rushed up to the stool eagerly and sat down. The hat stayed on for a minute or so before it shouted out, "Hufflepuff!"

"Boot, Terry!" A proud boy walked up and sat stiffly on the stool. The hat barely stayed on for a second before it yelled, "Ravenclaw!"

As the list of names went on Draco zoned out and started to gaze at the teacher's table again. He stared for a few minutes before he locked eyes with the Headmaster. His eyes twinkled knowingly at him and they continued to stare at each other. Draco became uncomfortable, he wanted to look away but couldn't.

"Granger, Hermione!"

Suddenly Draco was able to look away. Draco quickly looked towards Hermione as she ran up to the stool eagerly, completely missing the shocked look on the Headmaster's face.

Draco looked on as Hermione practically shoved the hat on her extremely curly head. His childhood friends sneered in disgust but Draco chuckled quietly. She looked adorable with that spark of excitement in her eyes. Before the hat covered her eyes she glanced at him, an anxious look on her face. Draco thought quickly of a way to reassure her and decided to wink. It seemed to calm her down as she smiled brightly at him before her eyes were covered.

Draco stared intently at the hat as it didn't speak for one minute. Then three minutes. Then five. Hermione started to frown and Draco got worried. What was going on? The worst situations started going through his mind. What if Hermione wasn't a witch? Draco started to pray to anyone that was listening. _Please don't take her away from me._

Five more minutes passed before the hat called out. "Gryffindor for Destiny's Child! The bridge, the heart, the savior!"

The words rang out through the Hall as the Hat was taken off Hermione's head. Silence was what met Hermione but she didn't appear to notice. She appeared dazed, and a little bit confused. Slowly she got off the stool and stood. A thunderous applause suddenly started and Hermione snapped out her daze. She smiled, though not a brightly as before and began to head towards the Gryffindor table. Draco desperately sought out her eyes to get a hint of what was going on before her eyes sharply met his, shining gold. Draco became entranced until she turned away from him again. He racked his brain until he found what he looking for. The message her look sent was, _later_. Suddenly he could care less about the Sorting.

Names buzzed through his head before his name was called out. Draco walked up confidently to the stool, though inwardly he felt unsure. He wasn't sure what would happen after Hermione's sorting. Slowly the hat covered his eyes and a voice filled his head.

 _Oh here is the second of the three_ , the hat said. _If I knew you lot were coming I would better prepare._

Draco was confused and irritated. _What did you say to Hermione? What are you talking a-_

 _No time_ , the hat said. _Listen young one, one day fate will call upon you for your service and you must be ready. The serpent will wake from its slumber and its venom will spread. You must be the cure. Do you understand?_

Draco was too stunned to reply. What the bloody hell was he talking about?

 _Anyway, on with sorting you_ , the Sorting Hat said. _Intelligent, almost matching Destiny's child. Loyal, but it's not your strongest characteristic. Brave, but only when need be or for someone or something you care about. Oh ho! Looky here! You have much potential child. Salazer would be proud._

Draco started to cheer up. He knew he would be in Slytherin.

 _I want you to be an example to them Draco_ , the hat said. _Remind them what it means to be a Slytherin. And remember what I said_. Draco was about to reply before the Sorting Hat yelled. "Slytherin for the Griffin! The wings, the ground, the mind!"

Once again there was silence. Immediately when the hat was off Draco was met by the sight of stunned students. The professors started to look suspicious and draco could feel his godfather's eyes boring holes into his back. He ignored all of it in favor of Hermione's eyes. They still shined gold and they seemed to stare into his soul. We need to talk they said. Finally Draco found the strength to stand and the Slytherin's began to politely applaud.

Draco made his way to his table and sat down heavily in his seat. The snakes stared at him expectantly but he ignored them in favor of the sorting. He didn't feel like answering any questions.

He stare across the room at his friend's curly head but she ignored him in favor of conversing with a prefect, who of course was redheaded. Draco scowled, an unpleasant feeling filling his chest. What was up with all the redheads anyway?

Soon Theodore sat down next to they and they began to converse.

"So what was up with the Sorting Hat anyway? Why did it take you so long to be sorted?"

Draco still in a sour mood simply replied, "Just spouting off nonsense is all. Nothing to worry about."

Theodore looked at him skeptically, but dropped the subject sensing his mood. They sat silently for a moment before a name rang out through the hall.

"Potter, Harry"

Harry stepped up towards the stool and sat down. Similar to Draco's and Hermione's sorting it went on for at least ten, tense minutes. Finally the sorting hat yelled, "Gryffindor for Fate's child! The sea, the writer, the savior!"

Applause immediately rang out for the boy who lived and he quickly walked to the seat next to Hermione. The redheaded twins started chanting. "We got Potter! We got Potter!"

Draco's two friends started conversing at the table full of the brave. Occasionally glancing in his direction. Draco's mood continued to lower. He was out of the loop, which was unusual. He was a Malfoy after all. Malfoys know everything, at least that's what his father said. But then again, his father seemed to be wrong about a lot of things lately.

The rest of the sorting and the feast passed in a blur and soon Draco was getting ready for bed. He stared at the bathroom mirror looking for changes. He sure felt different but outside he looked the same.

Same platinum hair, same pale skin, same pale blue eyes.

This frustrated Draco and he walked to his room and jumped in bed. His friends shot him weird looks but continued on with their business.

The lights went off but Draco was still awake staring into the darkness. It taunted him. It told him that he was clueless. And so Draco fell asleep, still in the dark. His thoughts haunted by the Sorting Hat's words


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Thank you to those who are reading this story! Please review, I would appreciate feedback!**

 **Author's Note: My dear readers I am so sorry that I have been absent for the past few weeks. School is starting to take its toll on me because of the work that is piling up. Don't worry your pretty little heads, the bookworm always finds a way! I might be updating less frequently than usual but I will keep up with the story, I promise you. I might update twice a month, maybe more. Still figuring out the kinks. Please forgive me for my absence and thank you for sticking with my story. Anyway, enough with my rambling. Here's the next chapter!**

Harry: The Gryffindor Dorms

Harry twisted and turned in his sleep. He groaned quietly as though in pain but abruptly fell silent. After a few minutes of stillness He sat up and gasped, his eyes glowing the color of the killing curse. Blood ran down from his lightning scar and the skin surrounding it was deathly pale. The dream he had silently ran through his head, as if it wasn't a dream, but a memory.

The Dream:

 _Harry ran through a dense forest at a fast pace. Despite the fact that his legs were aching and that rain was pouring all over his body as though to suffocate him, he kept up the pace. After all, if he faltered his step for a second the beast would surely catch up with him. And he could not afford for this to happen, not if it meant more innocent lives taken away as a casualty._

 _As he continued to run suddenly everything started to become sharper. He was no longer running at a normal human pace, but at the speed of sound. He zipped through the trees as if they weren't there and hopped over rocks and fallen branches like a professional hurdler. His eyesight became better, and he could see through the dark and the rain in front of him as if the forest was his natural habitat. Slowly his short, scrawny legs disappeared until it fully evolved into long, lean and muscular legs. His legs weren't the only part of him that was trained. All of him was more built and agile like a fighter or a dancer. He had matured._

 _His ears picked up a sound. It wasn't close but it wasn't too far either. He stared to pick up his pace subconsciously and he closed his eyes as he focused on where the sound was coming from. He listened and after a second the sound of his pursuer's feet was pounding in his head. He could almost see the shape of the person. From what he could gather the person was strong but light, which allowed him to move quickly on his feet. This wasn't the problem, for Harry knew that he could outrun whoever the beast was._

 _The problem was the power he could hear radiating off him. It echoed around the beast like screams would from a maiden's throat. Harry had never encountered power like that before. A power that dark should not even exist, it was against the Laws of Nature. This troubled Harry and that anxiety sat deep in his chest._

 _He turned to the right hoping the beast would catch the movement. It did not disappoint._

 _It suddenly shifted as well, so quickly that the shift in the air hit Harry like a tidal wave. He did not let the pressure affect his form so that he would not alert the beast. Luckily the beast appeared not to notice the ripple that came with his change in position. Harry declared victory in his mind. He now knew that the beast was west of him. Harry smirked to himself. He had this in the bag._

 _Then the sound of his pursuer vanished. Harry skidded to a stop and frowned. Now where did his opponent go?_

 _He turned around in a circle but only the sight of trees greeted him. Perhaps his opponent quit the chase? The idea made Harry frown. He needed to end this tonight. If he didn't he consequences would be dire._

 _A flash of white suddenly showed up and before Harry could react a fist flew at his face. Harry rocketed through the air and once he started falling the scene started to shift. Instead of the dark sky he saw a damp ceiling. He was no longer falling but chained to a wall, shirtless. He shifted but winced. Harry looked down and saw that cuts and bruises marred his body. Harry sighed and slumped in defeat._

 _He looked to his left and saw a redheaded lady staring at him. Harry was startled. Her eyes looked exactly as his own. She was beautiful, clothed with a white sundress and flats which was surprisingly clean considering she was sitting in a dirty cell. Freckles dusted her heart-shaped face. She appeared unharmed but seemed haunted as she looked at him sadly._

 _The women smiled halfheartedly and reached out, caressing his cheek. "My boy, my dear son I'm so sorry."_

 _Shock overcame Harry's senses. He sat stock-still and stared at the women. No it was impossible. He had never even seen pictures of her. There's no way his imagination could conjure up such a detailed image of his-"Mom?"_

 _Lily Potter started to sob quietly. She made as if she was going to hug him but restrained herself. Instead she looked at him longingly. "I'm so sorry I left you to deal with this by yourself."_

 _Harry couldn't speak, still over come by the fact that his mother was sitting right in front of him._

 _Lily took his silence as a prompt for her to continue speaking. She breathed in deeply. "This wasn't supposed to happen you know. James and I planned a nice, safe, relaxing life for you. One with no Dark Lords chasing after us. One with your grandparents still alive." She looked him straight in the eye. "They died first you know."_

 _Harry's breath caught in his stomach as the realization that this was actually happening dawned on him._

 _"_ _Just a week before you were born. They were so excited to see you." A tear ran down her face. "James was devastated. He wouldn't come out of our room for days. But the morning you were born he came alive again. He cried tears of joy shamelessly. Your godfather, Sirius, had to hold him up." She started wailing. Harry yanked at his restraints but they wouldn't release him. All he could do was watch as his mother broke down._

 _"_ _Please don't cry," Harry whispered. Lily's head whipped towards him and stared in shock, as if she had forgotten that he was there. She smiled at him and wiped her eyes, laughing bitterly._

 _"_ _I'm sorry," his mother said, "It wasn't supposed to be like this."_

 _They sat in silence for a moment until a large bang echoed throughout the room. Lily straightened in her position and seemed to panic. "Oh no! Not yet, please not yet!"_

 _Harry looked around wildly, searching for what dared to threaten he and his mother._

 _"_ _Listen Harry, and listen good. You must not let others control you. The only way for you to win this war is for you to write your own fate."_

 _"_ _Mom! What are you talking about? How is this even p-"_

 _"_ _There's no time Harry!" Lily shouted furiously. "In order for you to break what binds him to your world you must find the pieces and destroy him. Do you understand?!"_

 _Harry nodded his head, not really understanding but taking note in his head._

 _A deep roar rang around them, the ground vibrated and cracked along with the ceiling. Harry's cuffs dug into his skin, causing his wounds to worsen. Lily got up from her face in front of him and stood proudly. Her white dress made her glow in the darkness and destruction. She turned back to look at him, determination gleaming in her eyes._

 _"_ _Remember Harry, not everything is as it seems."_

 _She stood in front of him and raised her arms to her sides, green energy gathered at her hands. "You will not touch my son!"_

 _The darkness drew closer along with a fog. Red eyes appeared and along with it came an evil cackling. Shivers ran up Harry's spine and familiarity registered in his brain. Harry knew this laugh._

 _It was the same laugh that rang in his mind when Hagrid mentioned Voldemort for the first time._

 _A hand reached out from the fog towards his mother. Lily closed her eyes, eyebrow furrowed. Harry screamed. "Nooo!"_

 _Then everything went black._

End of Dream:

Harry began to speak. "The Dark Lord awakens and with him comes a fog. Unclear and uncertain the heroes shall commence. Ready for battle!" The last sentence rang out loudly yet no one could hear.

Except of course a pale boy and a curly-haired girl who sat up in their sleep. "Ready for battle!" All three fell back asleep, two remembering nothing but the writer remembering red eyes and the words of his mother.

Fawkes cried for the three children that would face so much as the years went on. But soared in the air near where they slept to salute and support the trio that would be remembered forever.

The Next Day:

Harry sat down with Hermione and ate as she talked about how excited she was for their next Charms lesson.

School has been going on for two weeks now and things have already become strange. Harry was not used to strange because of the way life with the Dursleys was. Horribly dull.

However in the past three weeks things have become excitable. First was the Potions lesson with Professor Snape. Just like Draco told Harry, Snape was out to get him. As soon as they sat down the professor made a dramatic entrance and immediately set his eyes on Harry. They stared at each other briefly before Snape scowled and stomped away.

After he did attendance(with a few mocking words towards Harry) Snape questioned everyone on Potions in first year. Many failed but some passed, including Hermione and Draco of course. Harry was ready for this. As he bought many Potions books in preparation after Draco's warning, some above first year level. He was confident in his knowledge and understanding after studying for the rest of the summer.

"Potter! What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Harry answered swiftly. "The Draught of Living Dead, sir."

Silence. Snape had a shocked look on his face while everyone else looked surprised that the professor hadn't yelled at him yet. Snape quickly regained his composure however and fired another question.

"Where would you look if I told you to find me a bezoar? How would it be useful?"

"I would get it from a goat and it is useful because it can cure most poisons."

"What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

"They are the same plant, sir. There is no difference."

Silence. Snape looked grudgedly impressed while everyone else looked surprised. Harry cleared his throat awkwardly and attempted to end the silence.

"The plant also goes by aconite, sir."

After that Snape left him alone but came by once in a while to help with his Potion. When the Gryffindors left the classroom they called Harry a miracle worker. Harry replied: "The books were quite an interesting read."

The other fascinating event was during their first Quidditch lesson. Harry heard all about it from Draco and Harry was anxious to get in the air. Hermione was nervous but excited to try yet another new thing. She even started to read _Quiditch of the Ages_ to "study" for the lesson. He and Draco had a good laugh about that.

The day the lesson occurred Theodore Nott stole Neville's Remembrall. He taunted him behind his back after he crashed into a tree causing Neville to go beet red and walk to the Hospital Wing in shame.

Harry fumed in his spot, fist clenched. _How dare he dishonor my housemate?_

Harry glanced around and saw Hermione floating on her broom, furious as well. They exchanged looks. The message she meant to send was clear. _Show him no mercy._

Harry got off his broom and walked towards his target. Nott and his friends slowly stopped laughing as they watched him approach. In the corner of his eye he saw Draco slowly shake his head at the scene. Harry focused back on his target once more.

"Give it here, Nott."

Slowly everyone noticed the scene and fell silent to watch what would happen next. Theo swallowed nervously but gathered his courage once again. "What are you going to do about it, Potter?" He smirked. He tossed the ball in the air once, twice. When he caught it, he mounted his broom and zoomed into the air. Harry quickly followed him, despite the screams of protest from below.

Nott turned around, smiling. The smile quickly fell off his face once he spotted Harry flying expertly up to him.

Harry was quickly becoming annoyed and decided to try again. "Give it here, Nott."

Nott scowled harshly. "If you want it so badly, take it." He dropped the ball and it fell quickly towards the ground. Harry pursued it, not even taking time to consider his actions.

All the noises fell away and there was only Harry and the ball. The ball increased its speed, taunting Harry to try and follow it. All Harry knew was that he wouldn't let this ball get away. Not when Neville needed it so much. And with that thought he was able to move faster. By the time he blinked the ball was in his hand and he was moving right over land. Cheers reached his ears as he landed.

That is until Professor McGonagall came. It turned out in Harry's favor because now he is on the Quidditch team(which apparently his dad was in too, as a Chaser). Needless to say Harry has had a good few weeks.

Hermione finished her lunch just as Hedwig landed to drop off a note. Hermione opened the note while Harry fed his owl some chicken.

"Apparently Hagrid wants us to meet him in ten," Hermione looked up at him, "Feel up to it."

Harry nodded eagerly and hurriedly finished his food as Hedwig flew away. They gathered their things and headed off. Draco met them in the Entrance Hall and they continued on their way chatting about classes and homework and their future.

Harry smiled as the wind hit his face. He was sure he was going to enjoy this school.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately I did not have the pleasure on creating the Harry Potter series but I do have the pleasure of twisting the story in anyway I want to and make any pairings I want because it came into existence( thanks J.K. Rowling). Thank you to those who are reading this story! Please review, I would appreciate feedback!**

 **Author's Note: Sorry everyone! It's been awhile. I would've caught up with this story sooner, but school had taken up most of my attention along with the clubs I had been attending. Anyway, I'm here now and I plan to regularly keep up with the story to the best of my abilities. I just want to make it clear I'm not giving up on it.**

Hermione: The Library

Hermione sat by herself, looking through new magical reads she found like, "Life Of A Werewolf" by Selina Prior and, "The Law of Magic" by a former Minister of Magic. Now that she had finished all the homework that needed to be done this week and the next (she really wasn't supposed to have done it, but she got bored), Hermione thought it was time she started to learn more about this newly introduced Wizarding World. She knew she could have gone to Draco about it, but she wanted to do this on her own. Find out things with an open mind and open heart.

It wasn't like Hermione had anything against her platinum haired friend, but she hasn't spoken to him alone in awhile. Every time she thinks she has found a chance another one of his Slytherin buddies, more like lackeys, show up and catches his attention. Plus, the Slytherins have made her extremely wary of her surroundings. All they have done since she has gotten to Hogwarts is harass her and call her a Mudblood. She has even had to take the liberty to find secret passageways and other routes in order to avoid them and get to class unruffled.

Also, Hermione couldn't forget that Draco was raised as an upper class pureblood, a Malfoy. She knows he is trying to change, but she can see that part of him peek through the surface whenever he messes with the other muggleborns with his friends. Hermione won't judge him for it to his face, but a part of her doesn't trust him yet, not fully. At this point she can only trust herself to find answers to a world she's completely new too.

Speaking of new, Hermione couldn't get what the Sorting Hat said out of her head. _Gryffindor for Destiny's Child! The bridge, the heart, the savior!_

What did that even mean? As far as Hermione could tell, what happened in her sorting wasn't a normal occurrence, especially if the looks on the professors' faces were anything to go by. Even the Headmaster's jaw had dropped to the floor. Hermione couldn't help but giggle at the memory. It was priceless.

Anyway, the Sorting Hat spoke of how the Serpent would return and with it its poisonous venom. The magical community would need as much help against the Serpent as possible, whether they want to admit it or not. It also spoke of how her apparent "fresh soul" would help save a lot of people, whatever _that_ meant.

Hermione tried to look up any instances in which something like this had happened before, but came up blank. She didn't even know where to start. What was she going to do? Walk up to Madam Pince and request that she try and get books for her about the terrible Serpent who would bring hell on earth. She could see the look on her face now, and it wasn't pretty.

Suddenly footsteps approached her at a slow pace. Hermione jerked her head up quickly and met the dark brown eyes of Theodore Nott. For once he was alone, and he didn't appear nearly as confident as he did a few days ago on the Quidditch pitch. His shoulders were slumped and it appeared as if he were trying to disappear. Once their eyes met, he froze in place, his eyes growing comically wide.

Hermione refused to move. She crossed her legs, folded her arms and raised an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation. The Slytherins have treated her horribly, but that didn't make her scared of them. In fact, that just made her angry. Not to mention this bloke had caused her housemate distress.

Nott still had that, deer caught in the headlights look on his face and decided to look anywhere but at her. Instead of explaining himself, he proceeded to question her. "Why are you reading this?" He had focused on the werewolf book by Selina Prior.

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him. "Why not?"

Nott started to gain his composure slowly. "Well they're no good savages, so there's no point in trying to understand them," he explained with a look of disgust on his face.

Hermione stared at him with disbelief in her eyes. Nott started to shift uncomfortably in place. A few moments passed in tense silence.

Then Hermione broke out laughing.

She clutched her stomach, bending over with the hilarity of the situation. Her uncontrollable curls bounced around her head in a frenzied dance and the color of her face became a rosy red. Her brown eyes sparkled mischievously. Theodore Nott stood dumbfounded, unsure of what he said that was so funny.

Eventually Hermione calmed down, and ended her laughter with a happy sigh.

She then went back to reading her book peacefully, hoping to absorb more knowledge, without further interruption.

Five minutes later she was just about to get to the interesting part about time turners when the sound of a throat clearing reached her ears. Her head shot up once again to see Nott still standing in front of her table. She looked around since he continued to stand in silence. Hermione shook her head and set down her book, starting to get annoyed. "Well?"

A bit of red stained his cheeks. He tugged at his collar nervously. "What was so funny about what I said?"

Hermione rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Well isn't it obvious?"

Nott stared at her blankly.

She reached for the book by Selina Kyle and held it so the cover faced him. "Have you ever read this before?"

He shook his head.

"Have you ever read anything like it?"

Once again he shook his head.

"Have you ever met a werewolf?"

"What's the point of these questions, Granger?" Theodore asked, starting to get annoyed with the talk about werewolves.

"How can you judge them if in reality, you know nothing about them?" Hermione questioned with a hard glint in her eyes. "How can you judge muggleborns with no basis for your hatred? What makes people like you so sure that they're superior to everything else?"

Theodore Nott was speechless.

"Well?" Hermione inquired persistently.

Theodore Nott had no idea how to answer that without causing the ire of the strange muggleborn. In fact, he had no answer that seemed truly justified, now that he thought about it.

Hermione nodded her head, as if his silence answered everything. She slowly got up and started to pack her things. "You should get going, it's almost time for DADA," she said without looking at him.

She didn't here him leave while she finished packing, but when she looked up, he was gone.

Despite the annoying Slytherins, Hermione had bigger problems to deal with. For example, the strange pets that her half giant friend is harboring.

Hermione and Harry ran into Fluffy during one of their walks around Hogwarts, which included the seventh floor(after Harry's pestering). They found him in a locked room while running away from Peeves, sitting on top of a trap door. The duo questioned Hagrid about the Cerberus, and he told them about how he bought it from a strange man in a bar. For what, she still doesn't know, but she was sure it was to guard something.

 _Like the thing in the vault that someone tried to steal,_ Harry had said. He also mentioned how Hagrid had picked said object up while he was taking him around Diagon Alley, the day they all met. That thought was tempting to continue, but right now she had more pressing matters. After all, Hermione still couldn't wrap her head around the strange trust Hagrid had in the most dangerous of creatures.

One time Draco was able to tag along and on that day they discovered Hagrid also had a dragon egg, to be more specific a Norwegian Rigdeback egg. Hermione nearly had a stroke when the egg rattled slightly in the pot over the fireplace.

Hagrid said the egg would hatch today, and he planned on keeping "the adorable little fella" in his care deep in the Forbidden Forest. Right.

Like Hermione was going to allow that to happen.

She loved Hagrid, truly she did. But trusting him to take care of a baby dragon with fiery breath on _school grounds?_

Hell no.

She already talked to the others about her thoughts and they had come to agreement. They were going to try and convince the half giant to let the dragon soar free in a place where it would be happy and well cared for. Draco already mentioned how his father knew a few dragon trainers in Romania. Hagrid could just owl them with a request for a pick up and no one would ever have to know the creature was ever there.

Which led to Hermione, Harry, and Draco walking to Hagrid's Hut after they're DADA lesson that day.

Draco was muttering under his breath as Harry knocked on the door. "Bloody friendly giant, always doing gods knows what and being a pain in my arse…"

Hermione decided to let that comment go and ignore him. She couldn't blame her friend as she herself was very cross with their _much_ bigger friend as well.

Hagrid finally opened the door and allowed the trio in. He had a very happy smile on his face, which immediately set Hermione on edge.

"The little fella's gonna 'atch today," Hagrid said while rubbing his hands together over the fire. "I 'ave a feeling that we're gonna be the best of friends."

The three exchanged uneasy looks. Hermione hesitantly stepped forward. "About that…Hagrid we need to talk about this dragon."

Draco then proceeded to tell Hagrid about their plan for the dragon's future in the most friendly vice he could muster up. Hagrid seemed to get more and more disheartened as Draco continued on. Looking at the expression on his face pulled on Hermione's heartstrings, and she decided to approach him slowly. She put his hand between hers, and squeezed. He squeezed back.

After Draco was done, Hagrid stood in silence, taking in what was said. Harry moved towards Hagrid as well and, hesitantly placed his hand on his arm. Right at that moment it occurred to Hermione that she had never seen Harry touch anyone.

"It's all for the best," he said placatingly. "The dragon will have a home with creatures just like him, and no one would be able to harm him there." The fact that he would be able to harm no one else either was unspoken.

Hagrid seemed just about ready to decide when the egg started to crack. The trio scrambled away from it in surprise. A small screech sounded from the broken object as it continued to break further.

Hagrid lurched towards his mittens and snatched the egg of the frying pan. He dropped the egg swiftly, yet gently on the table in order to prevent harm to the creature. The three backed up even further, Harry in front with a slight protective stance as Draco held an arm out in front of her. Hermione grabbed his arm in trepidation.

Suddenly the fragments of the egg exploded away from the creature, causing everyone around it to duck. The creature screeched again as it shook its body, removing any remaining pieces of the egg.

Hermione looked on with fascination at the creature, which, quite honestly, looked a lot like a crumpled black umbrella with large spiny wings. Draco seemed as equally curious about the creature, his eyes glinting. She couldn't exactly tell what Harry was feeling, but his head tilted slightly to the side.

Hagrid was beaming from the opposite end of the table and clapped his hands together. "I think I'll name him Norbert."

He outstretched his arms towards the little dragon, in a welcoming motion. "Norbert, Norbert," Hagrid whispered. The dragon screeched once again. "Come to mummy."

The trio stared in disbelief.

"He's finally gone mad," Draco muttered. Then the sound gasp filled the area. Not from within the room however…

The three first years turn around and Hagrid raised his head. All of them were met by the sight of red hair retreating quickly towards the castle.

Harry groaned in frustration.

Draco cursed.

Hermione dropped her head to her hands in despair.

Of course they would get caught by Ron _bloody_ Weasley.


End file.
